Contributions to Science

Along with being an artistic genius, Leonardo da Vinci was an excellent scientist. He drew some of the most accurate anatomical sketches of his time. Since they did not know this at the time, the public rejected his scientific work because of his unorthodox methods and improper education. However, if his findings would have been accepted, they could've led a scientific revolution in the sixteenth century

While living in Florence, Italy, Da Vinci was given permission by the Republic of Florence to use dead bodies from the Hospital of Santa Maria Nuova for science. With these bodies, he performed many dissections and autopsies. The purpose of the dissections was to determine what the body as a whole looked like. Also, the findings were used to determine how muscles and bones worked. He performed many dissections on men, women, and even fetuses, and drew 200 pages of anatomical sketches. Leonardo was also a skilled inventor and engineer. He envisioned hydraulic pumps, flying machines, and even war machines. Leonardo is credited for designing the first war tank, an early helicopter, and even an early bicycle.

The people of the renaissance were not as impressed with Leonardo's work as people are today. They thought da Vinci's practice of autopsies and dissections was disgusting, and when the Pope heard of his practices in 1513, they were outlawed. Many of Leonardo's scientific findings were also overlooked because of his lack of a proper scientific education. Some of his inventions were also overlooked because some did not think they were possible. No one at that time knew just how accurate and feasible his drawings and inventions were.

Though da Vinci's scientific findings, engineering innovations, and multiple inventions were all very important, most were overlooked. Thankfully, all his works were not lost forever. Within the last few decades, Leonardo's anatomical sketches have been studied and proven incredibly accurate for his time period, and most of his engineering innovations and inventions are now considered possible as well. This just goes to show that if Leonardo was trusted as a scientist and engineer, he could have made an enormous scientific advance in the sixteenth century.